PASSENGER levels for budget carrier Easyjet increased 3.4% during November.

The airline, the biggest operator by passenger numbers at Liverpool John Lennon airport, carried 3.82m customers last month, compared with 3.69m in November, 2010.

Load factor, or the number of available seats sold, rose by 2.6% to 88.3%.

For the year so far, passenger numbers have risen by 11.2% to a total of 54.99m, and the load factor is 0.3% ahead, at 87.5%.

The increase compares with rival Ryanair, which on Monday recorded its first monthly decline in passenger numbers since it embarked on its rapid growth in the early 1990s.

Passenger numbers of 4.68m last month revealed an 8% fall from last year’s level of 5.06m. Load factor remained static at 80% for November.

Ryanair spokesman Stephen McNamara said the decline was expected and was due to aircraft being taken out of service during the quiet winter period.

“As previously guided, Ryanair’s 2011/12 winter traffic will decline by approximately 4% as we sit up to 80 aircraft on the ground due to higher oil prices. November was expected to decline by up to 10%.”